Charges filed in Puyallup hit-and-run crash that killed bicyclist
STACEY MULICK; The News Tribune
Published: September 16th, 2008 09:27 AM | Updated: September 16th, 2008 01:21 PM

Pierce County prosecutors filed charges this morning against a man suspected of street racing when he hit and killed a bicyclist on a Puyallup street last week, then fled the scene.

Blair Robert Jensen, 23, is scheduled to appear in Pierce County Superior Court this afternoon for his arraignment on vehicular homicide and failure to remain at the scene of an accident that resulted in injury of death. Jensen turned himself into authorities Friday afternoon, then bailed out later that day.

John McRae III, a 51-year-old Sumner father, was riding his bicycle the night of Sept. 8 in the 2600 block of East Main Avenue. He was struck by a passing car and died at the scene.

Witnesses told authorities the car, a Cadillac CTS, didn’t stop. One witness reported he’d been racing the Cadillac when the crash occurred. The witness said he was eastbound on East Main Avenue when the Cadillac pulled up and the driver, Jensen, revved his engine.

“The witness downshifted to second gear and accelerated to approximately 50 to 55 mph,” charging documents state. “He told officers that the Cadillac quickly passed him at a high rate of speed so he slowed down. He stated the Cadillac was approximately 500 feet in front of him when it hit the bicyclist.”

A tow company impounded the Cadillac, which had been abandoned on the side of a street, the next day and called police. Investigators released Jensen’s name and photograph to the media in hopes of finding him. They also contacted his family and relatives of his girlfriend’s in an attempt to find the two. Court documents indicate family members of both were not cooperative and referred detectives to lawyers.

Prosecutors also have charged Jensen’s girlfriend, 20-year-old Christina Ripple, with first-degree rendering criminal assistance. She has not been located, and a warrant has been issued for her arrest.

Defendant’s e-mails lead to higher bail
IAN DEMSKY; ian.demsky@thenewstribune.com
________________
Here are some “don’ts” for people charged with vehicular homicide and leaving the scene of a fatal accident, courtesy of defendant Blair Robert Jensen.

• Don’t send an e-mail to 25 people saying you are “just playing on the internet driving back from colorado,” and that you “towed the dodge 1300 miles to Boulder Colorado to trade it for this (expletive) Monster Truck” when the conditions of your $500,000 bond say you can’t leave the state.

• Don’t write “We just stopped for a second on the freeway to unload the machine gun on a herd of deer” when you also are prohibited from having guns (not to mention being prohibited from other violations of criminal law).

Jensen, who turned 24 on Valentine’s Day, was charged with killing a 51-year-old bicyclist in Puyallup while street racing last September. According to a state Department of Licensing spokesman, he still has a valid driver’s license.

Attempts to reach Jensen’s attorney Tuesday were not successful.

Pierce County deputy prosecutor Tim Jones said Superior Court Judge Katherine Stolz was angry that Jensen flouted the conditions of his release.

At a bail hearing Friday, Jensen’s bond was raised to $1 million in light of the e-mail and some photos that accompanied it. Both were included in court filings available online.

Stolz also changed some of the conditions of Jensen’s release, restricting him to just Pierce County instead of a four-county area.

She also underlined the section about firearms and one forbidding him from consuming alcohol or drugs, or associating with those who do.

“Zero tolerance – violations bail goes to $2,000,000,” she wrote.

Ian Demsky: 253-597-8756